Chapter 11 (TROHP)
Review Responses: Destributor: I'm glad you're liking the story. I know, but he needed Tom's knowledge to progress further so that he could defeat his big enemies. I'm trying not to make him too OP, and I think I'm doing okay. I do have some major threats lined up for him to fight. January 11th, 1993. I had just arrived back at Durmstrang, and had quickly unpacked my stuff. I was looking forward to accessing this resource Professor Megalos had decided to entrust me with, and had returned to school with an excited smile. I had learned that Slytherin had a lot of wealth hidden away in his castle, along with a massive library that was far larger than that of Hogwarts. It was devoted to all aspects of magic, and I quickly realized it would become my greatest resource. I put the castle under the Fidelius Charm, I couldn't have it falling into enemy hands after all. Covering such a large area was extremely draining, but certainly worth it. Generations of house-elves had maintained the castle and they even sold and stored potions and ritual ingredients, the money from their work was stored in the castle's vault. I eventually grew impatient and sought out Professor Megalos. I knocked on his door minutes later. "Enter!" He called out. I obeyed and entered his class room. "Hello, Harry. I trust you had a good holiday?" He asked, kindly. "Yes, I did. I made great progress on some of my plans. Sadly all of the Horcruxes seemed to have been created when Voldemort was younger, and far less skilled then I. What about you?" "Oh, I just worked some. I take it your here because you want to see this 'resource' I mentioned?" He asked, with a knowing smile. "I am. What is this resource?" I said, only one thing come to mind, and I doubted that he would trust me with that. "What you seem to already suspect. The hoarded knowledge, artifacts, and spoils of war that Grindelwald hid here." He said, with an amused smile. My shock must have been obvious. "I think you can use these artifacts and books to aid you in your rise. Keep in mind, I'm not giving them to you, I'm just giving you access to them to use and study. You can help yourself to potions and ritual ingredients, though." He said. "Thank you, sir." I said gratefully, though I felt a mere thank you was inadequate. "Your welcome, Harry," He said, rising from his seat. "I'll show you to the secret room." He said, and I followed him out of his class room. We arrived near my room minutes later, and he handed me a piece of paper. Grindelwalds treasure room is hidden in room 15B, it read. I noticed a door appear from nowhere. "The Fidelius Charm? Impressive." "You are more knowledgeable than I thought, Harry. Can you perform the spell?" Professor Megalos asked. I could tell he was very impressed by my ability to even identify the spell. He opened the door and motioned me inside. "Yes, I'm protecting three artifacts of my own. I'm having to hide my plans from my family, and Dumbledore and his useless order, and pretty much everyone. I want to build up my power, wealth, influence, and resources up before I get exposed." He knew better than to ask my plans. Dark Wizards understood the necessity of having secretive plots. "I wish you luck, Dumbledore needs some humbling. Anyway, this room contains thousands of books on nearly every subject; as well the stolen family magic of nearly a hundred families. It has vast stores of Potions and Ritual supplies, and several incredibly powerful artifacts that can be used for a wide variety of purposes; including augmenting or focusing some of the magic I taught you." He informed me. "I'll leave you to study, just don't miss meals. You can take books out of the room, just be sure to return them and not get caught with them. Don't even let Alexys see or read these books." He said, to my shock. "She can't handle this level of powerful magic, and won't be able to until she's seventeen or older. She isn't as advanced as you, even though she is very powerful and skilled for her age. Understood?" "Yes, sir." I said, respectfully and having a better understanding of his motives now. "Our lessons are over, I have surprisingly taught you all I could. We will still duel, of course, but you can learn a lot from all of these books." He said, before exiting without another word Now, I had another massive source of knowledge to absorb. I was glad that I read fast and didn't forget anything. Apart from seeing how Voldemort gained some of his power, I hadn't wished that I could un-see or forget anything. I chose a book on blood magic and returned to my room. February 14th, 1993. The last month was spent studying ahead in Potions and reading books from Grindelwald's treasure room whenever I could and practicing the spells. I am now six months ahead in Potions, and barring interference should be able to test into third and then fourth year Potions; if I work very hard and continue my intense studying schedule. I had already confirmed my possession of NEWT level knowledge in Ancient Runes and Care of Magical Creatures from Voldemort. I was quite surprised, I took him for more of an Arithmancy type. I had even learned several things I didn't already know. It was Valentines Day, and thankfully it was barely celebrated here. I was extremely thankful about that and glad I was too young for such stupidity. I did get the impression that Alexys expected some romance, but honestly I didn't want to do anything. I knew that I liked her and genuinely cared for her, but I needed those sex rituals to boost my power further, and I wasn't willing to be unfaithful to her. She deserved much better than that, and deserved better than to be second to my quest to attain greater levels of power. It was finally time for my next duel with Professor Megalos. I just hoped that I could defeat him with greater ease. I had a major power advantage and could exploit that. I assumed a dueling stance, and mentally prepared myself. He nodded, signalling me to begin when ready. I began with a very nasty curse. The Feast of Wolves curse, it simulated the pain of being torn apart by a pack of wolves. He deflected it, but I continued. I began my constant stream of spells: an impaling curse, entrail expelling curse, bone burning curse, burning and skinning curses. He was on the defensive, so I kept up the attack. I gathered up my power and blasted him backwards, and followed up with a Stunning Charm. It surprisingly hit, and he fell onto the ground. I rennervated him with a pleased smile on my face. "Impressive, Harry," He said, in slight pain. "You only won because of your power advantage, but I'll get some teaching assistants to equal the odds. It was smart to use the advantage, but you still need to be pushed further, and I'll need assistants to do that. Sadly, it will be this summer before I can recruit the ones I want. I'll have to put you in your place next year. I think three Sorcerers should be enough to challenge you." "Three?" I asked in shock. That many Sorcerers could easily beat me into submission! A Grand Sorcerer of my level wasn't powerful enough to defeat them! I doubt I could match three sorcerers, even as a high-level Grand Sorcerer! "Yes, three." He said, as if I were an idiot. "You have the potential to become an Archmage or better, Harry. You just need to continue working hard and pushing yourself. You could easily become a Mage in a year by abusing rituals, and then you simply need to quadruple your power. You have already surpassed Lord Grindelwald, who was a mere Sorcerer at the time of his defeat, and he terrorized the world! Once you become a mage, that is when it will become truly difficult." "Honestly. It's pretty difficult now, but I refuse to stop. I want to be the best and that requires hard work. I just need ways to train my magic harder to make grow faster, because I'll eventually run out of women willing to participate in rituals. How much will I need to grow my power after I become an Archmage?" I asked, with an undertone of dread. "By seven-fold." He answered, with obvious amusement. "Damn." "Merlin, and most of the Titans and Olympians were Magus level. They were worshiped for a reason, they had god-like power and everyone knew it. The point of me telling you this is to just do your best, Harry. You're already certain to be the most powerful in the world. Even if you don't fulfill your dreams, you can always dominate anyone who points it out." He said. I suppose that was his way of reassuring me. It did work well. "It's just all that work is intimidating. I still plan to do it of course, but it's incredibly humbling. I have to ascend to Mage status, quadruple my power, and then grow it by seven-fold." "And make sure you have skill and knowledge befitting your rank." Professor Megalos added unhelpfully. Though that was actually great advice. "Now, as for ways to train your magic harder. You simply need higher level magic, which requires and consumes more power. You need to use such magic on a regular basis and push yourself to your limits. Sadly, all the knowledge I can provide you with was in that room." "So I should look for more sources of knowledge; sooner rather, than later?" "Yes, memorize and master all the magic you can. You should try acquiring older, more powerful forms of magic. They will be the most taxing for you, though, sadly, most of that knowledge was hoarded by wealthy and influential families who probably can't even produce a lowly Warlock." "So the rich idiots are holding the exceptional few back." I said, in slight anger. "Yes," He agreed, his amusement obvious. "Until you can acquire the magic you desire, just keep working and studying hard. You may find a few pieces of powerful magic that can meet your needs. Experimenting will help you find the right bit of magic; it will be magic that tires you the most, consistently drains power, and may be hard to truly control. I would personally suggest Fiendfyre." I nodded in understanding, but had a question. "Would the Patronus Charm work too?" "Yes, if you can cast it. It may even allow you to discover new uses for it." "I could cast it at age eleven." I said, with a smile. "I wish you luck then, Harry. I'll let you get to it. I won't have anything to teach you until next term, we can still duel on a regular basis though." March 30th, 1993. I had successfully tested into third year Potions, and had even begun working on testing out of the mastery course. If all went well, I would have another mastery and be able to focus entirely on my electives next year. My studies and training had went very well too, I had even managed to condense my Fiendfyre into a life sized Ukrainian Ironbelly and achieve five percent growth in magic. For over a month of training that was incredible. I had experimented and managed the feat wandlessly and non-verbally. Which was yet more proof of my 'Mastery of the Dark Arts'. But that didn't mean I was neglecting other areas of my life. I had memorized a hundred books, spells and there wand movements. I was well on my way to memorizing the entire library portion of Grindelwalds treasure room, and had been considering a few rituals to perform. I was just leaving Potions, where I had impressed Professor White with my recently improved performance. "Stay behind, Potter." He said, as I was gathering up my books. After the students had all left, he motioned for me to sit down. "I am pleased with your recent performance, Potter. I'm glad you finally made time to try mastering Potions. I take it Professor Megalos is done molding you into a future Dark Lord?" Professor White asked, in a somewhat bitter tone. "I told you my plan, sir. I'm just sorry it displeased you. I have no interest in being a Dark Lord, and I'm certain Professor Megalos knows that." "What do you know about your group of friends and their families?" He asked. "I know they are 'dark' and pro-Grindelwald, if that's what you mean." I said, putting dark in air quotes. "Yes, it's interesting that Nurmengard was attacked, and that he was believed dead, and lo and behold, Zeus Megalos showed up as your teacher at the start of term. That wouldn't be an issue apart from the rumor that he died years ago and didn't have any biological grandchildren. But their grandmother was the rumored mistress of Lord Grindelwald. It's all very interesting, isn't it, Harry?" By this time, I was considering his points. "It is all very suspicious, on that I'll agree." I said, sensing his protective intent. He wanted me to be aware of who I was associating with, and seemed to have become more concerned recently. "If it helps I don't fully trust much of anyone, sir and that includes my friends. I'm well aware that people want to use me or exploit my talents and power. Could you not tell anyone else of your suspicions? If this is true I'd like to...preserve my ego and image." "Ah. Don't worry, I couldn't have people doubting my sanity and thinking me a paranoid conspiracy theorist anyway." He said, easing my concerns and proving he understood. "You might consider making more politically neutral friends." "I thought it was mostly the Dark Wanker and Grindelwald's supporters." I said, causing his lips to briefly upturn at my name for Voldemort. "They are just a small percentage of Durmstrang's students. Most of the students don't care about being slaves to some Dark Lord, and just want to get good grades and be left the hell alone." "I'll consider it. Hopefully such associations won't interfere in my plans." "That is all I ask, Harry. I'll let you get to your studies." "Goodbye. And thank you, sir." I said, after recognizing the dismissal and rising from my seat. Later that night... I had just returned from dinner and had spent the entire meal draining knowledge from my 'friends' minds. I confirmed the truth of all of those 'rumors' and safely fumed behind my Occlumency, while feigning ignorance. It all made sense. Why would Grindelwald entrust his spoils of war to a minion? Even a trusted minion. I knew I had to be careful, but I also knew that I needed to work against them. Now, I just needed a strategy to retaliate for their actions. I suddenly had a brilliant idea and wrote something down. Grindelwalds treasure room, which Harry Potter took from him, is hidden in room 15B, it read. The Fidelius Charm was most likely the greatest charm ever invented, and I was about to experiment with it. If I was right, it would make the fact that Grindelwald had a treasure room a secret, along with the fact that I took it from him, and its location. I disillusioned myself, made myself intangible, and peeked out through the door. I saw no-one, so I completely exited. I quietly walked to room 15B, thankfully seeing nobody out and about. When I arrived at the door, I cast several temporary wards. I wanted to make sure no-one caught me or interfered. I entered the secret room. The two weaknesses of the Fidelius Charm? Anyone in on the secret can betray the secret, in this case I was dismantling the charm from the inside, and just did so in under a minute. I discovered this weakness from my research, the charm could be easily dismantled from the inside. Now, it was time for the lengthy casting, and in this case the re-casting of the Fidelius Charm, but with myself as the sole holder of the secret. I finished the wand movements, and incantation ten minutes later. Now I just had to scan for Grindelwald's wards in here and dismantle them. I decided, it was possible there were secret rooms with more stuff in them, and I did love stuff, and hadn't found any gold, silver, or other items to fund a war effort. I began scanning, targeting the walls and floor. I quickly found a Fidelius that overlapped with his old one. The second weakness of the Fidelius Charm? Overlapping Fidelius Charms weaken the other Fidelius Charms because they partially merged; especially if they were cast by the same person. I was lucky that Grindelwald either didn't know that or thought that he could trust me. I crushed the remaining Fidelius into nothingness with my raw power, and opened the door. "Damn!" I said, in shock. The room contained a lot of eggs! I saw Occamy eggs, Phoenix eggs, Dragon eggs of all types, even Basilisk eggs born from two Basilisk's procreating. I looked at a piece of paper under stasis and quickly discerned the purpose of it all. Grindelwald was seeking immortality through rituals of sacrifice. I had to admit it was brilliant, far more so than Voldemorts idiotic Horcruxes. One dead Basilisk, and you get nine-hundred years of life-force. A dead Dragon, you get a few centuries of it. It's not as certain as Horcruxes, but it doesn't cost you your humanity and mental stability. After inspecting the room further, I noticed he had been in here recently. He was considering sacrificing a phoenix in a dark ritual, and had he succeeded he would have became nigh-invincible! When he died, he would have been reborn from the ashes and rapidly grow to his prime. Immunity to the effects of a Basilisks gaze. The ritual also takes a phoenixes flame travel, gives the ritual user a phoenixes strength. I was pleased. I had just saved this world from a resurgent immortal Grindelwald, and could use his plans to my advantage if I got desperate! Best of all? The eggs were all under stasis, and could stay that way until I needed them. I exited the room and secured it with several wards. I continued my search for secret rooms. Over the next hour I found his true 'treasure room'. A magically expanded room crammed full of precious metals, gems, rare objects, paintings and currencies of all types; including trunks full of galleons, sickles, and knuts. I also saw a trunk labelled Dragots. He even had a section labelled 'Goblin Silver' that was massive, and had full sets of Goblin Armor. Well, I think I should have plenty of wealth at my disposal. I also found several other secret rooms too. May 1st, 1993. A month gone, and my power had grown another five percent. I had to work noticeably harder to achieve it, but it wasn't consuming a lot of my time, yet. I had continued my great progress in Potions, and had scheduled a time for my Potions Mastery test. I had also continued studying and memorizing the books in my treasure room. I found an unimaginably powerful spell, specifically an ancient unforgivable: conjuring and controlling hell fire. In countries where it is or was illegal it carried a punishment of immediate execution. Fortunately, Britain never got around to making it illegal it, and neither did Norway. That should allow me to master a spell that was likely far stronger than Fiendfyre and hopefully of similar or lesser difficulty to control, though only time would tell. I had spent my month studying, barely seeing my so-called friends. I mostly spent time with Zeus who had been growing at a very healthy rate, his link to my powerful magic helping greatly. He had even begun leaving his nest that I created for him and flying around the room some. I kind of wished that Alexys and her friends would leave me alone, I had taken to raiding the Restricted Section and reading books from it, and citing that as an excuse to avoid them. I had learned quite a bit from doing that. I was lying on my bed, calmly reading a book about ancient magic. It listed some of the powers and magic attributed to the ancient, and incredibly powerful magical's. Granted the powers weren't common, but still, a single mage that could slay entire armies, thousands of wizards, was very impressive. The most some could do nowadays was one versus a hundred, and they called a hundred an 'army'. The magical's had been continually lowering their standards to conceal how laughably weak they all were, and I couldn't stop myself from finding that hilarious. I was disturbed from my thoughts by a knock at my door. I rose to answer it, drawing my wand and shielding Zeus while walking to the door. I opened my door to find Alexys there, and looking nervous. "Hey, Alexys." I said, with a smile. "Hey, Harry. Can I come in?" She asked politely. "Of course," I said, feigning confusion at her formality. I stood aside and let her, but kept my guard up. "Zeus looks healthy." Alexys said, in observation. "Yeah, I made him my familiar and it made him healthier, stronger, and helped him to grow a little faster." "Why have you been avoiding us?" Alexys finally asked. "I've been focused on attaining my Potions Mastery, preparing for several other tests and memorizing books from the Restricted Section. If I continue absorbing and comprehending information at this rate, I should have achieved my goals by my forth year. There is so much to memorize in the Restricted Section, and I have limited time to do that." "That's the reason?" She asked, in surprise. "Well, yeah. I have to do all that work and keep my other skills in peak shape, my power continually growing, take care of Zeus, and even make sure the electives I chose are best for me or if I should even take them. Those are just my academic related concerns." "Maybe you should drop a few classes, Harry." She said, in concern. "I've considered it, and I'm leaning more towards dropping Magical Creatures. I can't be completely sure until next term at the earliest though. If I deem my knowledge sufficient, then I'll drop a class or maybe even two. Hell, I might even just sit the OWLs and NEWTs in them, and test out. Ancient Runes is mostly memory retention and I could self-study for that mastery and get certified later. But I refuse to give up Alchemy or Ancient Studies." "Okay, Harry. I'll leave you to your studies, I just thought I may have driven you away." Alexys said, sadly. "You didn't. I just had too much to do, and not enough time to do it. I'm sorry if I hurt you, I was just trying to make sure that I achieved my goals." She nodded in understanding and left. I returned to my bed and book. And was disturbed again, five minutes later... I went to answer it, going through my routine for security and protection. I opened the door to find one Adaleide Dolohov. "Yes?" I asked, suspiciously. "I heard from Calypso that you're the guy to see about Sex Rituals." She said, nervously. I smiled reassuringly and invited her in. Authors Note: That creative usage of the Fidelius Charm was inspired by the work of: The Sinister Man, and his story: Harry Potter and the Prince of Slytherin. It's a great story, and I strongly recommend it to anyone reading this.